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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. wound — an injury
  4. clip — for paper
  5. wound — an injury
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. track — to keep track
  8. march — the month
  9. rest — what's left
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. clip — to cut
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. march — the month
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rest — what's left
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. rest — a break
  21. deal — to handle
  22. clip — a video
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com